The invention relates to an ignition system, such as glow plugs, spark plugs or glow attachments. On their surface exposed to the fuel/air mixture, these ignition systems normally have a ceramic layer usually of alumina or metal. Usually, no particular attention is paid to the mechanism of the combustion, and the ignition temperatures are relatively high. However, the higher the ignition temperature, the shorter is the service life of the ignition systems. In addition, the higher the ignition temperature of the fuel/air mixture, the more difficult it is to obtain an exhaust gas which is as low in pollutants as possible.